A study on the neural basis of sustained reversal movement

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15K12769
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Basic / Social brain science
• Research Institution: Nagoya University
• Principal Investigator: Takagi Shin 名古屋大学, 理学研究科, 准教授 (90171420)
• Research Collaborator: Sugioka Takumi ; Kato Koharu
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: 運動制御 / C. elegans / 光遺伝学 / 生体アミン

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Certain artificial stimuli can induce sustained backward locomotion (SBL) in animals. Taking advantage of the fact that optogenetic activation of a subset of neurons expressing the glr-1 gene induces sustained locomotion, we tried to elucidate the underlying cellular mechanisms. Activation of RIM neurons in addition to the command interneurons AVA and AVD is necessary for SBL. For longer SBL, activation of SMD and/or RMD appears to be critical. Although exogenous tyramine at a high concentration was reported to induce SBL, we found that tdc-1 mutants defective for the tyramine-synthesis performed longer SBL when glr-1 positive neurons were activated.

Free Research Field

発生生物学　・神経科学